Episteme and Techne

Congratulations to Professor Alexis Gregory who had two paper proposals accepted to the 2009 Southeastern College Art Conference (SECAC) meeting in Mobile, Alabama, (October 21-24, 2009).

The first paper proposal was accepted as part of the “Small Town, Big Design: Methods and Processes for Design Research” session and was entitled “Complexity In Situ: Architecture Studio Design in Smaller Cities and Towns.”

The second paper proposal accepted was entitled “The Mausoleum: How Can Architecture Be Used to Help Deal with Death?” for the session “The Infinite Finite: Depictions of Death in Western Art”.

Take a moment to relax and watch this incredible video of the world’s second largest aquarium tank.

SCAD Department of Architecture Prof. Alexis Gregory has had two recent occasions to promote her research on women in the profession of architecture.

Professor Gregory served as the moderator of a panel discussion at the 2009 AIA South Carolina Spring Meeting in Charleston, SC. The panel topic is “Overcoming Obstacles to Women’s Achievement in Architecture in South Carolina.” The panel was based on Professor Gregory’s current research on the attrition of women in the field of architecture.

As well, Professor Gregory recently completed an article with a fellow Clemson University School of Architecture alumnus in the 2009 South Carolina AIA Magazine. The article is entitled “Architecture Looks to It’s Feminine Side” and was based, in part, on her Master of Science research at Clemson University.

A friend of the department is having an exhibition of recent and revisited drawings and prints at Gallery Espresso. John Metcalf’s work will be on display from June 29th through July 29th. Go check out the work of this talented artist!

WPA 2.0: an open design competition for working public architecture organized and sponsored by cityLAB

cityLAB, an urban think tank at UCLA’s Department of Architecture and Urban Design, announces a call for entries to “WPA 2.0: Working Public Architecture.” WPA 2.0 is an open competition that seeks innovative, implementable proposals to place infrastructure at the heart of rebuilding our cities during this next era of metropolitan recovery. WPA 2.0 recalls the Depression-era Works Projects Administration (1935-43), which built public buildings, parks, bridges, and roads across the nation as an investment in the future—one that has, in turn, become a lasting legacy. We encourage projects that explore the value of infrastructure not only as an engineering endeavor, but as a robust design opportunity to strengthen communities and revitalize cities. Unlike the previous era, the next generation of such projects will require surgical integration into the existing urban fabric, and will work by intentionally linking systems of points, lines and landscapes; hybridizing economies with ecologies; and overlapping architecture with planning. This notion of infrastructural systems is intentionally broad, including but not limited to parks, schools, open space, vehicle storage, sewers, roads, transportation, storm water, waste, food systems, recreation, local economies, ‘green’ infrastructure, fire prevention, markets, landfills, energy-generating facilities, cemeteries, and smart utilities.

Architecture For Humanity Atlanta is proud to announce its 1st Design Auction. This August, Studioplex will play host to an outdoor event celebrating activist design, and we are seeking your support by way of birdhouse design and construction. Your submissions will be part of a silent auction and all proceeds will benefit activist design programs developed by Architecture for Humanity’s Atlanta chapter.

Please submit a sketch or description of proposed birdhouse indicating how your design will need to be displayed for the event. Designers will have three options for display:
1. Hanging (Simple metal hooks will be provided for the event)
2. Standing (Stands will also be provided for the event)
3. Self-provided means of display (if you plan to include a stand or display mechanism in the design of the bird house)

Please submit to Sarah Green at sarah.gre@gmail.com no later than July 25th so we can have a clear idea of how many hooks/ stands we will need to provide, as well as spatial arrangements for the event.
Finished birdhouses must be submitted by August 15th to 520 Park Ave, Atlanta GA, 30312. Please contact Paulita Bennett to arrange the time of drop off. If you are submitting from outside the Atlanta area, please allow for shipping time to ensure that all houses are received by August 15th.

Complete details can be found in this PDF:afhatl_artistscall-2

Art vs. Design

An international Open Call for Unique Talent
Details: http://www.artistswanted.org

Images are power. In this dynamic era compelling design can move millions and transcendent art can inspire a generation. From cave paintings of early man to today’s industrial designers, art & design has uniquely shaped the world around us, each in its own distinct way. This contest is designed to answer the age old question: What shapes our world more, art or design?

Join thousands of creative people in this visual dialogue.

Mark Mothersbaugh, acclaimed artist and lead singer of art-rock band DEVO leads a panel of judges including Jarrett Gregory (curator at NYC’s New Museum) and Donwan Harrell (founder and creative director of Akademiks clothing) in selecting the top artist or designer to be featured at a gala reception at the New Museum in June. The public also plays judge – determining the most powerful medium of the moment – in an online face-off that pits art submissions against design submissions.

Opportunities will be created for everyone who participates and we are awarding over $11,000 in prizes.

Grand Prize & Student winner will be awarded with:
A gala reception at the New Museum in New York City

$2009 cash grant
International Publicity, including a feature in Filter Magazine and work shown through Gawker Artists exposing the winners art or design to hundreds of thousands of visitors across 190+ website galleries

$500 in gear from Akademiks
Plus the Red Bull Prize: Offering a choice of: A vintage Vespa OR a trip to London to visit the Tate Museum and the Design Museum OR a fully loaded Mac Book Pro

Every participant gets:

An online portfolio and international exposure
A $70 “Thank You” package with gear and discounts to help further your work

Registration is open now and continues through Midnight May 31st.
Details: http://www.artistswanted.org/

Art VS Design was put together by a handful of Brooklyn based artists and designers who have experienced first-hand the difficulties of achieving national attention. We believe both Art & Design hold a powerful place in our society and it is our intention to break-out new talent through a process that is dynamic and open-ended.

eco-friendly mass custom concepts
Join us for a celebration of socially conscious design, debuting in Savannah.
Hosted by Structured Green, noted furniture designer Joel Edmondson
unveils his latest line of mass custom concepts.
September 26, 2008
Cocktail Reception: 5:30 – 8:00 pm
Structured Green showroom
620 E. 35th Street
Savannah, GA 31401
For more information, call 912.236.4701 or visit www.structuredgreen.com

Farnsworth House floods form record breaking rains

The following was forwarded to me by Prof. Afifi:

The following is a direct link to Brian White’s 2006 thesis project published in AIArchitect this past August, good timing to publish for the hurricane season. It is an excellent article to announce and place a link to in the architecture department blog.

Prof. Afifi had a chance to reflect on Brian White’s work when a stdunet at SCAD and stated:

“Brian White’s thesis project titled “Hurricane Research Center: The Anti-Levee” is an outstanding example of innovative and ground-breaking architectural design. Brian took the challenging problem of hurricane-resistant building design, and looked at it with a new, avaunt-guard approach. I vividly remember the discussion during studio critique when that ‘moment of illumination’ happened as we reconsidered the initial project idea of resisting the flood. That moment shifted the design strategy from resisting nature to working with the forces of nature and looking into how natural creations, such as trees, balance wind and water forces. This idea translated into the architectural concept and form that Brian created in his thesis project. The thesis is a clear example of how theory and conceptual thinking can inform and transform architecture as a creative and informed building art.”